Sabonis Fountain Pen Review

This is a review of the Sabonis Fountain Pen. This fountain pen brand is primarily marketed in Latin America. This specific pen was sent to me from Mexico. I am not 100% sure what model this is, as it came to me without a box or any paperwork. There doesn’t appear to be any markings that reflect a model on the pen or nib.

The first thing I noticed about this pen, was the weight – it’s pretty darn heavy. Much heavier than most of my other pens. The pen is pretty plain looking – in a good way, it also does look more expensive than it is. The cap is very tight fitting, it requires a pretty good grip to pull the cap off. There is also a noticeable click when the cap is removed and or reinstalled.

The dimensions of the Sabonis Fountain Pen are as follows:

Capped – 5.25″
Cap removed – 4.75″
Cap posted – 6″
Weight – 1.1oz (this was using a digital scale that was zeroed & includes the converter plus what ink is left inside.)

I was surprised that this pen didn’t include a cartridge and or converter. I tried using the extra Platinum Preppy and the Waterman converters I had… neither one fit correctly. I ended up ordering an International Piston Converter for a Pelikan (from my friends at Pear Tree Pens) and it ended up fitting perfectly.

The nib seems to be a fine-medium steel nib. It has the Sabonis logo and is made in Germany. It originally was difficult to get inked up. It was having a lot of problems starting up, even after I let the ink prime in it for 24+ hours. The next day I decided I needed to floss the nib (this opens the tines up a bit & allows for a better flow). That ended up working perfectly. Now the pen starts much faster and flows a nice fine-medium line.

The nib is nice and smooth and it produces a nice wetish line that has a nice bit of shading to it. I recently did an ink review with the Sabonis, it can be found here: J Herbin Bleu Azur Ink Review

All in all, for an inexpensive fountain pen, this is a pretty nice pen. I won’t say it’s my favorite, but its fun and will stay in my rotation.

Matt is an Internet Specialist for a multinational franchise. Matt has lived and worked in Hawaii, Chicago, South Florida and currently resides outside of Atlanta. He enjoys his hobbies including: Fountain Pens, Wetshaving, Clocks, Antiques & Coffee. He even roasts his own coffee weekly.

It’s funny, I live in Mexico and had stopped using fountains pens after using them for years. Recently I decided to give them another shot and liked the experience even more. So I went downtown shopping for a nice and not very expensive fountain pen and discovered this brand. Never heard of it before but it was well made and was not expensive, in fact it feels higher quality than other pens from Inoxcrom (a spanish brand which is not bad). I purchased the Sabonis and so far my experience has been very similar: bit hard to get the ink flowing but a nice and respectable performer. I am considering buying a more upscale model just because I really liked the design.